Energy+Flow+and+Food+Webs

Objective

The primary objective of this lesson is for students to create and analyze a food web, recognizing the potential consequences when one organism becomes extinct. The essential question guiding this study is: What happens to a food web if one organism becomes extinct? Students must complete a food web activity followed by questions related to the food web to reinforce their understanding.

Homework Overview

Abiotic Factors

  1. Identify four abiotic factors that influence a pond ecosystem.
  2. Identify four biotic factors present in a pond ecosystem.
  3. Discuss the potential effects on biotic factors if an abiotic factor, such as a significant decrease in light exposure, changes.
  4. Identify three additional abiotic factors that could negatively impact the pond ecosystem.
  5. Explore the potential consequences of removing all microscopic organisms from the pond ecosystem.

Review

Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles

Reference materials include information from the Amoeba Sisters regarding the carbon and nitrogen cycles. Students should be able to compare and contrast these two essential cycles.

Nitrogen Cycle

Additional related topics include the Phosphorus cycle.

Food Webs and Energy Transfer

Academic Standard

According to SC.912.L.17.9, students should utilize a food web to identify and distinguish producers, consumers, and decomposers. They must also explain the pathway of energy transfer through trophic levels and understand the reduction of available energy at successive trophic levels.

Producers

Producers, also known as autotrophs, play a crucial role in ecosystems by creating all the food that heterotrophs (consumers) utilize. Examples include:

  • Plants
  • Algae
  • Some bacteria
    Without producers, the survival of life on Earth would be impossible.

Consumers

Consumers are synonymous with heterotrophs because they rely on other organisms for sustenance. Examples include:

  • Rabbits
  • Deer
  • Mushrooms
Herbivores
  1. Herbivores consume only plants. Examples consist of:
       - Cows
       - Elephants
       - Giraffes
Carnivores
  1. Carnivores consume only meat. Examples include:
       - Lions
       - Tigers
       - Sharks
Omnivores
  1. Omnivores eat both plants and animals. Examples consist of:
       - Bears
       - Humans
Scavengers
  1. Scavengers feed on the tissues of dead organisms, including both plants and animals. Examples include:
       - Vultures
       - Crows
       - Shrimp
Decomposers
  1. Decomposers absorb dead material and break it down into simple nutrients or fertilizers. Examples include:
       - Bacteria
       - Mushrooms
Detritivores

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